Gerry Ellis / Nurse log stage five temperate rainforest, Olympic National Park, Washington

Neil Lucas / Nurse log in Olympic NP, Washington State, USA

Kirkendall-Spring / Row of trees which have grown from a fallen nurse log, Spruce Loop, Hoh Rain Forest of Olympic National Park, Washington, USA, April.

Kirkendall-Spring / Young trees growing in the root ball of a fallen tree along the Spruce Loop, Hoh Rain Forest, Olympic National Park, Washington, USA, April.

Laurie Campbell / Rowan / Mountain ash (Sorbus aucuparia) seedling growing on dead birch, Wester Ross, Scotland, June

Nature Production / Fallen Japanese Zelkova tree (Zelkova serrata) with seedlings growing from log, Miyazaki, Japan

Alan Watson / Western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) growing on a nurse log in inland temperate rainforest, Goat Range Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada. July 2007

Wild Wonders of Europe / Ruiz / Fallen tree trunk acts as nurse log for Spruce tree seedlings in forest, Brtnicky Hradek, Ceske Svycarsko / Bohemian Switzerland National Park, Czech Republic, September 2008

Tim Edwards / Young trees growing from nurse log. Olympic NP, Washington State, USA

Tim Edwards / Hoh tree with elevated roots having grown from nurse log, Olympic NP, Washington, USA

Neil Lucas / Fallen nurse log with ferns, Olympic NP, Washington State, USA

Gerry Ellis / Fir (Abies sp) nurse log in temperate rainforest interior, Pacific coast, North America